Daniel Negreanu Calls Phil Ivey Edge-Sorting Verdict “Absurd”

Last week, a judge ruled against Phil Iveyin his high-stakes lawsuit against Crockfords casino in London, concluding that the poker pro had cheated by using edge-sorting to win $12.5 million at the baccarat tables. Daniel Negreanu (pictured), a six-time bracelet winner and friend of Ivey’s, was stunned by the verdict and had some harsh words for the casino and the presiding judge in a recent interview.
“I think it’s ludicrous, I think it’s absurd, completely unfair, and absolutely wrong,” he told PokerListings.

“Casinos, by nature, are designed to take advantage of people by manipulating and deceiving them into thinking they can win,” he said. “A player gets the best of them, in the sense that he finds flaws in what they’re offering, and they should go, ‘Oops, we screwed up.’ They should pay it like honorable people and then move on and address their issues.”

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Crockfords, of course, had a very different opinion of the matter and was quick to withhold Ivey’s massive win after deciding he and his partner, Cheng Yin Sun, used edge-sorting to gain an advantage with the prohibited technique.

In his recent interview on “60 Minutes Sports”, Ivey (pictured) made no attempt to hide the fact that he used the controversial strategy to win the cash. “The casino is my opponent and it’s my job to exploit weaknesses in the house and give myself the best opportunity to win,” he said.

Not only does Negreanu believe the dismissal of Ivey’s case to be unfair, he also believes the incident could have a negative effect on Crockfords’ bottom line by scaring away high rollers. “It sets a bad precedent for gamblers who are going to gamble high,” he said. “You could win a bunch of money and then all of a sudden – without doing anything that’s considered cheating – be told you’re not getting your money.”

While Crockfords acted quick enough to freeze Ivey’s winnings, Borgata (pictured below) in Atlantic City wasn’t so lucky. In 2012, Ivey and Sun used the same strategy there to add another $9.6 million to their baccarat profits. The casino paid out the cash before the 38-year-old’s London exploits came to light. They are now suing Ivey, Sun, and Gemaco to try and recoup the losses.

About the recent Crockfords decision, his anger was clear: “In every logical human being’s mind, it’s an open and shut case, but the judge ****ed him in the ass,” he said.

Due to his involvement with the Crockfords trial, Ivey has missed most of WSOP APAC this year, but Negreanu isn’t worried for him. “He’ll be fine,” he assured. “But I’ve talked to him and he’s not happy about it. He felt good about the case. I think if there is an option to appeal, he will appeal.”

9 COMMENTS

So if Ivey could see the players cards online, and played to beat the rake and the player he is playing is that ok Danny boy. Phil Ivey is a dirtbag, but atleast he has a good friend to stand up for him. That’s atleast commendable.

I guess being a huge investor in Full Tilt was ok too. And why didn’t you play in the world series a few years ago, hmmmm

So if Ivey could see the players cards online, and played to beat the rake and the player he is playing is that ok Danny boy. Phil Ivey is a dirtbag, but atleast he has a good friend to stand up for him. That’s atleast commendable.

I guess being a huge investor in Full Tilt was ok too. And why didn’t you play in the world series a few years ago, hmmmm

I don’t claim to know anything about full tilt’s problems but I think most agree that Phil Ivey was a very hands off investor in the site. I disagree with your comparison to looking at someones cards online and relating it to Phil Ivey’s situation against the casino. Casinos have literally cheated for years – have grown into powerful corporations and have been able to LEGALLY offer games where they knowingly ALWAYS have the odds in their favor. The casinos that Ivey has played at are large and rich with plenty of staff and years of gaming experience. The fact that they don’t have someone at these casinos INSPECTING the cards they use for games where MILLIONS might be exchanged is simply poor quality control on the part of the casino. I have played poker for over twenty years without any huge successes but I have had more than one marked deck brought in the game on me (and not intentionally either) – sometimes card manufacturers make bad decks of cards and sometimes those cards get to the casino floor. The responsibility lies in the hands of the casino to make sure they are using an unmarked deck of cards – all ivey did was ask that they use that manufacturer – he didn’t bring his own deck. Also, when was the last time you sat down at a black jack table and they announced – oh yeah odds are in our favor for this game and we use a six deck shoe but will only use 3 decks of that 6 deck shoe to futher reduce your already losing percentages. Ivey did the same thing as the casinos do everyday……he waited for them to give him money because he found (didn’t create) a flaw in the decks of cards they were willing to use – THEIR CARDS – not his deck.

sometimes card manufacturers make bad decks of cards and sometimes those cards get to the casino floor. The responsibility lies in the hands of the casino to make sure they are using an unmarked deck of cards – all ivey did was ask that they use that manufacturer – he didn’t bring his own deck. Also, when was the last time you sat down at a black jack table and they announced – oh yeah odds are in our favor for this game and we use a six deck shoe but will only use 3 decks of that 6 deck shoe to futher reduce your already losing percentages. Ivey did the same thing as the casinos do everyday……he waited for them to give him money because he found (didn’t create) a flaw in the decks of cards they were willing to use – THEIR CARDS – not his deck.

Spot. Fkn. On.

I don’t think there is a player anywhere on P5S that wouldn’t exploit this given half the chance. I would.